Good news bad news

This is my 20 story, signalling 20 days of school, for me. Just thought to let you know.

Harder to lose

Harder to buy

This is the land of

Sugar high

            The poem plays in my head as my fingers start to do their daily dainty work, each evening. This was patching up the soldiers’ belongings, or also known as their clothes, and once in a while one of the items that their mother, sister, or sweetheart would send in. And each night, I would silently try and not cry, as pictures of my mother and little sisters come to my mind. Oh, it was hard work, for the women in the war, always worrying, cleaning, and taking care of stuff. It seems as if it will never leave a lady’s life in the near future. It was always too much work, and barely any free days.

            “Oh stop complaining Anita, there are others who has it way worse,” said Mother Lila as if reading my thoughts. I don’t bother to look up at her over the fire, as my fingers patch up this nasty rip on one soldier’s uniform.

            “I ain’t complaining, Mother Li, I was just… thinking about how life is hard and-”

            “In a complaining tone, thinking or not? Yeah right, I can hear ya complaining a mile away, even if it is in your head,” she says in her strict grandmotherly way. I sigh, and roll my eyes a bit, reprimanding myself a bit for doing it again. “But anyways…” she trails off a bit as if a bit unsure of how to go on. I start to put my guard up, preparing myself for the worst. War does that to you, it gives you a nasty surprise when you were expecting one to be good and hopeful. After a while, though you’ll get used to it, even if it took a year or two.

            “The boss…” uh oh, if it’s something about the doctor then it’s going to be bad really bad. “Are you listening Anita?” she says bringing me back to reality, just as my mind was about to go to the worst case scenarios at what might of happened to the doctor.

            “Yeah, I’m listening,” I say giving her a quick glance before going back to my mending.

            “Well then, the boss said ya can take a day off a day after tomorrow,” she says quickly, in an almost grump voice but underneath it I can catch just a hint of gratitude.

            “Oh thank you, thank you!” I yell, suppressing the urge to jump up and down and give her a peck on the cheek.

            “Don’t thank me, thank the boss, and he’s got something else for ya…” she trails off uncertainly again, but I didn’t notice because I was excited about having a day off again. “He um, said that… Your brother,” she takes a deep breath before muttering the last word so quietly that I couldn’t hear.

            “Come again?” I ask my beating heart still excited.

            “I said your brother um… died?” she said. Everything started to crash down, onto me as I realize why the doctor even gave me a day off. My brother dead and he was the only other lifeline I had here, without him…. I don’t bother thinking about the stuff that might happen now. In fact, I don’t bother to notice everything around me anymore, once I heard that he died, I just shut down. In the distance, I can hear Mother Lila screaming my name, and someone else, someone familiar, and yet not familiar. But I don’t hear their words behind the screams, or the scrambling feet, because I can feel myself being welcomed into the darkness.